The Chinese Prime Minister received in Germany, an increasingly critical partner

June 19, 2023

The German head of state received Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Monday, who is making his first trip abroad, a test for relations between Berlin and Beijing marked by growing rivalry.

The German president set the tone during his talks with the Chinese leader: the cooperation between the two countries “remains important but has changed in recent years”, underlined Frank-Walter Steinmeier, according to tweets from his door- lyrics by Cerstin Gammelin.

“China is a partner for Germany and Europe, but also increasingly a competitor and rival in the political arena,” he added.

The bulk of the Sino-German government consultations with Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s team will take place on Tuesday.

Li Qiang, appointed in March, will continue with an official visit to France where he will attend the Summit for a new global financial pact.

This dialogue with Paris and Berlin comes at a time when relations between Beijing and Washington are particularly tense. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been in China since Sunday to try to initiate a diplomatic thaw.

But for Berlin, relations between China and the United States have “particular importance for security and global cooperation”, underlined Mr. Steinmeier.

He pleaded with his Chinese interlocutor for the two great powers to “strengthen their channels of communication”.

Germany’s largest trading partner and a vital market for its powerful automotive sector, China has long been favored by Berlin. Under the mandates of Angela Merkel, until the end of 2021, this format of Sino-German consultations was regular.

Germany has however hardened its tone for more than a year, particularly in the face of threats against Taiwan and accusations of persecution against the Uyghurs.

Xi Jinping’s lack of condemnation of the Russian invasion of Ukraine has also deepened the rift between China and Western Europe, Germany in particular.

Evidenced by the publication on June 14 by Berlin of a document that describes China as a hostile force.

China, although “partner” of Germany, acts “against our interests and values”, accuses in particular the German government in its “National Security Strategy”.

For Berlin, with Beijing’s action, “regional stability and international security are increasingly under pressure” and “human rights are not respected”.

This Security Strategy, which also targets Russia, has been resented by the Chinese government.

“Viewing and building international relations by seeing others as competitors, rivals or even adversaries and turning normal cooperation into matters of security or politics will only push our world into a whirlwind of division and confrontation,” he said. warned Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin.

The difficulties encountered by the Chinese economy, which is struggling to overcome the post-Covid period, motivate Li Qiang’s visit to Germany.

For its part, Germany is seeking to reduce its trade dependencies on Beijing, as the Covid-19 pandemic and the disruption of international trade it has caused have opened Germans’ eyes to their vulnerabilities.

Li Qiang is “Xi’s economic czar and he is in charge of straightening out the struggling economy,” Ian Johnson, a China expert at the US think tank Council on Foreign, told AFP. Relationships.

“So it makes sense to go to China’s main trading partner in Europe,” he observes.

“For China, Germany is the most important player in Europe and, as relations with the United States deteriorate, Beijing has an interest in showing that it has a constructive relationship with the biggest player in Europe,” confirms Thorsten Brenner of the Global Public Policy Institute (GPPI).

“The question is whether the Germans “continue to play along pretending that there is a broad agreement with Beijing” or whether they “choose a new path by speaking frankly and limiting final statement to areas where there is a real way forward for cooperation”.